Stats and Financials

Every Paw Counts

PAWS is a limited-admission, no-kill shelter. We rescue dogs and cats primarily from Philadelphia’s animal control shelter based on available space in our three facilities, adoption locations, and foster homes, and on our ability to provide proper care for animals’ behavioral and medical needs. Once we rescue an animal, we remain committed to its care until we can find it an appropriate, loving adoptive home. PAWS only euthanizes animals with untreatable illnesses/injuries, or whose behavior would make them a danger to the public if released.

Shelter Statistics

There has been a dramatic reduction in Philadelphia’s homeless pet population since PAWS began: nearly 40% fewer animals will enter the city shelter in 2017 than when we started in 2006 – approximately 18,000, down from 30,000. The lifesaving rate has also steadily climbed: to an estimated 83% in 2017, up from the abysmal 11% that prompted PAWS’ founding more than a decade ago. Still, there is much work to be done to ensure survival for every savable pet in Philadelphia.